


Your secret's safe with me

by lightswoodmagic (sarah_writes)



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Architect Louis, Famous Zayn, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Harry has a secret, M/M, Pining, Prince Harry - Freeform, Royal Variety, Royal customs are...loose, Shy Harry, Singer Zayn, and have a group chat, the boys are all in a fandom for zayn, the rating is just for the swearing tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-03-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:01:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22869796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarah_writes/pseuds/lightswoodmagic
Summary: He knew almost everything about Haz, considered him his best friend. He knew his favourite movies and books, how he liked his coffee, knew how many pets he had and what he was most afraid of. Louis knew how to calm him down when he was panicking, and that he’d lost his virginity to his ex-boyfriend when he was 17. He knew that Haz had curly hair, green eyes, that he was tall and considered himself slightly awkward. He knew his Instagram account that only had aesthetic pictures or ridiculous jokes, but in the all the time that Louis had known him, he’d never learnt, or been allowed to know, Haz’s full name, what he sounded like, or what he looked like.Louis didn't care.Or, when Louis' favourite singer comes back and announces he's performing again, him and the rest of his group chat decide to go. When Haz, the man Louis' fallen in love with without meeting him, says that he can't, Louis tries his best to convince him with a drunken phone call, hearing his voice for the first time. It's not until he's at Royal Variety that he swears he can hear it again.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik/Liam Payne, but very minor - Relationship
Comments: 49
Kudos: 664
Collections: HL Royalty Fic Fest 2019/20





	Your secret's safe with me

**Author's Note:**

> Hiiii everyone!  
> So, I've absolutely hated my writing recently, and this took me quite a while to get out. I hope that you all enjoy it!  
> A massive thank you as always to my beta and beautiful friend Mia, my wonderful group chats, and everyone who encourages me.  
> There's a bit of texting in this fic, so just know that bold is Louis, italic is Harry, underline is Niall, and bold AND italic is Liam.  
> Thanks! xx

It wasn’t the sun creeping in through the curtains, or his usually shrill alarm, that woke him. It was a constant hum, intermittent but frustrating, consistent enough that he couldn’t manage to go back to sleep. With a loud groan and an exaggerated flail, Louis was ripped from his sleep, threw his duvet off, and reached for his phone. Blinking against the harsh light, he was positive he’d read it wrong. He rubbed his eyes, rolled onto his stomach, and read it again.

Apparently he’d read it right the first time. 187 messages from Whatsapp; three from Liam, eight from Haz, one from Niall, and _175_ from their group chat. Just like that, Louis was suddenly wide awake. They all lived in London, wouldn’t have been talking about anything like this overnight, and it was only 7am; something had happened, and it was _big._

He was slightly giddy now as he unlocked his phone, sprawling out over his bed on his back to attempt to read through it all. When all he saw at first was capital letters and keysmashes, he rolled his eyes and sent a message instead.

7:03am  
**What the fuck is happening?! Over 100 messages seems excessive. You wankers woke me up, what’s going on?**

7:04am  
LOUIS. TOMMO. TOMLINSON. Zayn’s coming back, he’s PERFORMING. 

“What the _fuck_?” Louis dropped his phone straight onto his face.

He was coming _back_. Louis suddenly felt his heart racing in his chest. He fumbled to pick his phone up and write back when he saw that the other boys had chimed in as well.

7:04am  
**_AND he’s dropped the date for a new album!!!!_  
**_Think of all the new outfits we’re gonna get  
_Try not to think about it too hard, Payno’s gonna have a heart attack

7:05am  
_Haha well, he’s going to show his face at some point. May as well get used to it, Liam  
Also good morning, Lou :)  
**Bugger off, as if you don’t think he’s just as beautiful**_

Louis snorted, tapping out a reply as he swung his legs out and shifted, his feet hitting the floor as he sat on the edge of the bed.

7:06am

**This group chat isn’t called Operation Ziam for no reason Payno**

**Where’s he performing?**

He stood up and stretched, yawning as he wandered into the bathroom. It’d been over a year since the public had really seen Zayn, and even longer since he’d performed. Louis had been following his career since he’d been a bright-eyed teenager on X-Factor, shy and withdrawn with a voice to kill. He hadn’t won, but he’d been signed, and gone on to release five albums in five years. Louis had watched as he’d been overworked and run down, and when he’d stopped making music and almost entirely removed himself from the public eye, no one had been surprised.

They’d still been devastated, though. Louis let himself think back to when he’d first joined the fandom for Zayn, had first found a safe space on Tumblr to gush about how brilliant his voice was and how pretty he was. It’d been something that he hadn’t even known existed, these groups of people of all ages, genders, and countries coming together to bond and talk about celebrities or books or TV shows. It was the best thing he’d ever done.

He glanced down at his phone as he turned the shower on, letting it warm up as he quickly replied to a message he’d missed.

**Oh, and good morning Haz :)**

Niall was typing, something that seemed to be long winded, so Louis threw himself in the shower, desperately hoping that it’d wake him up properly. He tried to remember the last time they’d seen Zayn; that movie premiere, maybe? Or the football game with his mates? He hadn’t even posted any selfies on his socials, and Liam had been going insane, desperate to see his face. While they all loved Zayn, Liam seemed to love him just a bit more than everyone else, a hopeless crush that the other boys teased him about.

It didn’t help that Louis was _positive_ that if they actually ever met, they’d be perfect together; knowing Liam for seven years and following Zayn for almost a whole decade had convinced him. Louis had also managed to convince himself that it was his goal in life now, to get Liam and Zayn to _at least_ meet. It wasn’t realistic, and maybe Niall had called him creepy on more than one occasion, but Liam deserved it, and if it meant that Louis would get to be Zayn’s best friend at the end, it was just an accidental bonus, really.

He could hear his phone vibrating again on the hard surface of his bathroom sink as he washed his hair, echoing through the room and sending a spike of adrenaline through him. He’d _missed_ the feeling, this feeling of excitement and apprehension all bundling in together. Zayn hadn’t performed in over a year, and while the fandom understood, it was a daily occurrence to see a post or tweet from someone missing him, or desperate for him to do just one more live show.

By the time Louis stepped out of the shower, running a towel through his hair, they’d somehow managed forty messages between them all. Louis skimmed them, saw that it hadn’t been announced _where_ Zayn was performing yet, and went to finish getting ready for work. He’d forgotten how excited they all got, how easy it was to get swept up in it all. The fandom had still somehow been active, even with next to no content, but Louis wasn’t even going to _look_ at Tumblr or Twitter until after work. He had his boys to keep him updated in the meantime.

He’d known them all for years now after he’d responded to a post about starting a group chat. It’d been a terrifying thing at first, because he’d always kept a bit to himself online, but when he’d joined the group, the only other person in there had been Niall, and everything had just fallen into place. They were some of his best friends now, the people he told everything to, and it wasn’t just an online friendship. Louis had met Liam and Niall for drinks, gone to football matches with them and had them over for dinner. The only person he hadn’t met was Haz, and it was slowly killing him.

As Louis shoved his shoes onto his feet and threw on his jacket, his phone vibrated again, and there it was, Zayn’s first performance in years in trademark Niall; all capitals.

7:57am  
ZAYN’S PERFORMING AT ROYAL VARIETY. LAST MINUTE ANNOUNCEMENT, NEW TICKETS GOING UP

Louis froze at his front door. Royal Variety was fucking random, but a smart decision when he stopped to think about it. It held a certain level of reputation, had a large number of the general public there without everyone being _too_ intense for Zayn, and he’d be able to slink into the background if he wanted to.

**We definitely need to go! When are tickets on sale?**

He pulled his jacket tighter around himself as he left his flat, jogging down the stairs and trying to keep up with Niall and Liam’s messages. They were all affirmative, both definitely wanting to go to the performance, and they were already planning the best way to get tickets and where they’d stay.

Haz hadn’t said a word, but Louis could see he’d read the messages. He pulled up their private conversation and started a voice message, knowing he wouldn’t get one back but too cold to take his gloves off as he walked to the tube.

“Hey Haz, I just wanted to make sure you’re alright?” Louis sidestepped what looked like a puddle of vomit with a grimace. “You’ve been a bit quiet this morning, and that’s not really like you, love.” He sent it before he could regret the _love_ , and waited for his reply.

He’d just slid in between the closing doors of a train when he got a text back.

8:12am _  
Hey Lou, I’m okay, sorry that I’ve been a bit quiet. I just can’t make it to Royal Variety with you all, and I’m just a bit sad about it. Nothing to worry about!  
Also, good morning. Love hearing your voice. _

There was a stab of something deep in Louis’ chest, a twist of frustration melted slightly but the bolt of giddiness spread to his stomach and settled. In the end, the frustration won out, and he pushed out a breath, startling the woman next to him. He’d been _so sure_ that this would be it, that this would be the one time when he’d be able to actually _meet_ the man he’d been pining after for years.

He knew almost everything about Haz, considered him his best friend. He knew his favourite movies and books, how he liked his coffee, knew how many pets he had and what he was most afraid of. Louis knew how to calm him down when he was panicking, and that he’d lost his virginity to his ex-boyfriend when he was 17. He knew that Haz had curly hair, green eyes, that he was tall and considered himself slightly awkward. He knew his Instagram account that only had aesthetic pictures or ridiculous jokes, but in all the time that Louis had known him, he’d never learnt, or been allowed to know, Haz’s full name, his voice, or what he looked like.

Louis didn’t _care_. He didn’t _care_ what he looked like or who he was, because he’d somehow managed to fall in love with him at least three years ago anyway, and nothing had changed it so far. He’d dated men, only because it had seemed ridiculous not to _just_ because of someone he’d never met, and had random hook ups in clubs, but no matter how hard he tried, everything came back to Haz.

They’d never spoken about it, but Louis was positive he knew; he’d dropped enough hints over the years. He’d flirted in the group chat so much at one point that Liam had started a private message with him for the sole purpose of calling him out. Since then, he’d tried to be cautious, tried to hold back the pet names and enthusiasm, but it only gave him hope when Haz seemed to flirt back, seemed to tease Louis and tell him how gorgeous he was.

Or tell him how much he loved his voice in the morning while he was sandwiched between people on the tube.

Louis shifted in his seat, running his hand down his face with a low groan. It was just that _everything_ reminded him of Haz.

It was the woman sitting across from him with ringlets around her face that made him wonder if that’s what his hair looked like, and the man next to him playing Candy Crush like Haz said he liked to do under the table in meetings when he got bored. It was the cold snap of air that rushed in whenever the doors opened that reminded him of how much Haz hated the draft in his bedroom, and the way that the light in the train flickered and bought back memories from the storm that had kept them both up texting as thunder had rattled Louis’ windows.

Mostly it was the way that every couple he saw made his chest ache with _want,_ made him crave Haz in a way he constantly felt he’d never get to have.

His phone vibrating in his hand made him remember that he’d never written back. He ignored the message from his boss and managed to send back one of the worst thought out messages he’d ever written.

8:20am **  
Oh**

World’s worst text. God, how fucking stupid was he? It wasn’t Haz’s fault he couldn’t make it, or that Louis’ mood was slightly sour now. He groaned, earning a huff from the woman sitting next to him, and ignored her to quickly send a follow up.

8:21am **  
That’s alright, Haz. Bit shattered though, if I’m honest.**

The reply was almost instant.

8:21am _  
I’m sorry, really. If I’m allowed to be cheeky though, why shattered? x_

Louis couldn’t help the way that his mouth turned up in a grin at the _x_ that sat at the end, the always obvious sign for when Harry started to get a bit flirty, a bit suggestive, a sure sign that Louis was only a message or two away from blushing into his coat.

8:22am **  
You know how much I wanna meet you. Have to see those curls for myself, yeah? Xx**

He carefully shoved his phone back in his pocket, making sure to keep his elbows tucked in unless he _wanted_ to piss off everyone around him, and slipped through the doors onto the platform when the train stopped. The weather was just starting to cool down, more scarfs and beanies starting to appear on the morning commute, but Louis seemed to feel it more than most people. He always had, always wearing layers and still shivering when everyone else was wearing thin sweaters and no socks. He pulled his coat further around himself as he jogged up the stairs to the street, weaving through the crowd of people heading down into the station on their way to work.

Friday hadn’t come quick enough. His boss had been pushing him and his team the whole week, getting snippier by the day as Louis tried desperately to help where he could. He’d been on track with his sketches for the building, everything _supposed_ to come together perfectly, until fucking _Jake_ had fucked up _again_ and pushed everyone back. Louis had been sending paragraphs in the group chat all week, sure that he was annoying the lads, but they never complained, just let him rant and rave and question ‘why the _fuck_ did I become an architect, honestly’ until he felt like he could breathe again.

It helped that Haz constantly told him that architects were hot and so it was a career that was made for him.

So he loved flattery; sue him.

Louis could feel his phone vibrating in his pocket again as he pushed open the glass doors to his building, an automatic jolt shooting through his body when he associated it, as always, with Haz. He fished it out with one hand, waving to the secretary with the other, and ignored the group chat to read Haz’s new message.

8:49am _  
Only if you catch me on a good day. They look like a bird’s nest right now._

There was a small wait, and then  
_  
And I want to meet you too. You know I do xx_

Louis sucked his bottom lip into his mouth as he walked the well-known path to his desk, throwing out distracted waves to his colleagues as he stared at his phone.

The usual morning buzz was soft around him as he contemplated what to say, frustrated at the constantly shitty luck he seemed to suffer when it came to meeting Haz. There was always something; a family dinner, a sporting match he couldn’t get out of attending, a meeting he had to go to or a trip overseas that his work took him to.

It wasn’t his _fault_ , he knew. People were busy, with jobs and family and friends other than those they met online who were obviously desperate to just see him.

Or even know his actual name. Making up names like Harold or Horatio was getting tiring.

Louis could feel the frustration licking at his skin now though, pushing back at the rational side of his mind until all common sense seemed to bleed out through every pore. He knew he wasn’t owed anything, and that Haz had every _right_ not to want to meet in real life; the internet was a terrifying and intimidating place, and Louis could’ve been anyone.

But there was the whining in the back of his skull telling him that Haz knew what he looked like, what he sounded like, followed him on his personal socials and saw selfies of him with Liam and Niall. There was the incessant press of everything creeping up to say that Haz just didn’t _want_ to meet him, that he wasn’t really his type, that he’d been lied to all along.

Louis liked to think he knew Haz better than that by now, though.

He threw himself down at his desk, leaning forward on his elbows to tap out a response.

8:59am **  
Then meet me. Another time, any time.**

**Or at least tell me your name.**

**Or both, even.**

A steaming mug of tea was slammed onto his desk and sloshed onto the surface, a soft, apologetic sound blending perfectly with everything else that was his confusing Friday morning.

He sighed. “While I appreciate the tea mate, I probably could’ve done without the tiny puddle on my desk.”

“Well if you just got your tea yourself like a fucking normal person, you wouldn’t have to put up with my lacklustre service.” Jordan perched himself on the edge of Louis’ desk and folded his arms over his chest. “Be grateful, you prick. Careful though, it’s hot.”

Louis wrapped his hands around the warm ceramic with a grin, a low hum slipping out before he could stop it. “Yeah, yeah, I’m very grateful.” He took a long sip, wincing when the steaming liquid hit his tongue, looking down at his phone to avoid Jordan’s pointed eyebrow raise. “Seen Jake today?”

As if his words had summoned the wanker, Jake sauntered past his desk with an exaggerated spring in his step. What he was so happy about, Louis would never be able to figure out. He murmured the words to Jordan and watched as he cracked a smile.

“Yeah, well rumour has it,” he leant close to Louis with an exaggerated whisper, “he’s getting fired today. Thank fuck.”

Louis barked out a laugh, quickly hiding behind his mug with a cough as everyone looked up. “How do you even know that?”

“’s a secret.”

As he took another sip of his tea, his phone vibrated on the desk between them, slightly startling him. He didn’t have a chance to grab it before Jordan’s eyes lit up, and suddenly it was snatched out of his view.

“Mate, c’mon,” Louis put the mug down to reach for his phone, slight panic running through his system, but Jordan was dancing away from his desk with a grin. “Hey, come on, don’t be a wanker.”

It wasn’t that Jordan teased him for his fandom friends, or thought he was odd for chatting to people he didn’t know online. It was that Jordan loved it _too_ much, because in his eyes, any opportunity to make fun of Louis for an over the top crush was too good to pass up.

Jordan’s eyes scanned quickly over what looked like Haz’s last message, and his eyes widened. “And miss you both finally confessing your love for each other? No thank you.”

But then Louis’ entire fucking life flashed before his eyes because Jordan was _typing_ , was writing back to Haz with a smug but satisfied grin when Louis hadn’t even read the messages.

Louis was too shocked to really move until Jordan gently put his phone back on the desk in front of him. His voice was slightly croaky when he spoke. “What did you just do?” He jolted in his seat when Jordan clapped him on the back.

“Helping you out. You can thank me later. He’s pretty romantic, your Haz.” And then he was moving away from Louis’ desk with a soft laugh.

His phone was face down as Louis stared at it when it vibrated once, twice, three times. Everything faded away to nothing as Louis tried to calm his racing heart, tried to stop his twitching fingers, tried to tune out the clacking of keyboards and the yelled conversations across the room, but it was no use. He pushed the mug in small circles around his desktop as he tried to talk himself into thinking everything would be alright.

There was every possibility that Jordan had just ruined everything, that he’d just straight up told Haz how Louis felt because he was sick of hearing Louis pine and sigh and sick of watching him _blush_ and _grin_ at his phone like a sap.

But there was also the possibility that Jordan had opened them both up for a conversation they’d been dancing around for months, _at least_ , and that Jordan had forced him to take the lead at a time when he wasn’t sure how to.

There was only one way to find out.

With a harsh breath, he clung onto his mug, flipped over his phone, unlocked it, and read.

He was surprised the ceramic didn’t crack when his grip tightened, surprised that no one glanced up when the thump of his heart was surely loud enough to echo throughout the room, or that Jordan didn’t come screaming past with an ‘I told you so’ when Louis let out a relieved laugh.

“Mr. Tomlinson? Mr. Archer’s here early for your 9:30.”

Louis grinned up at James, rapping his knuckles on the desk as he stood, leaving his phone as he grabbed a couple of folders. While Harry’s message had been slightly suggestive, Jordan had just gone all in. Louis would have to thank him later.

9:05am _  
I want to. Would absolutely love to meet you, hear your laugh in my ear and see your tattoos in person and feel your arms around my waist._

_Probably wouldn’t be able to stop staring at you, though._

9:07am **  
Alright, I’m just gonna come out with it. I like you. I have for ages, and my friends (especially Jordan) are sick of hearing me talk about you and whine about the fact we haven’t met. I want to meet because I know we’re supposed to. I like you so much, Haz.**

9:12am _  
Wait, really? Are we doing this?_

_Thank God, because it’s been driving me crazy. I like you too, even though I feel like a fucking teenager saying it. I have for ages, Lou._

_I want to meet you, and the others too, but I want to meet you. _

It wasn’t until Louis came back from his meeting, smile still high on his cheeks and new design swirling through his brain that he realised he must’ve missed the sound of his phone vibrating as he’d walked away from his desk.

Just like that, with one extra message, the world shifted under Louis’ feet again.

9:17am _  
But I can’t. We can’t meet. I’m sorry._

*****

The canned laughter from _Friends_ seemed too loud in his lounge room as Louis curled up further on the armchair, the room silent except for the small noises Liam made every so often as he read through his messages with Haz. His eyebrows were furrowed, a sign that Liam didn’t know what to say or how to approach a topic, and Louis knew what he was in for the second that Liam sighed and threw Louis back his phone.

“I’m sorry, Tommo.”

The tone was just as soft as Louis had known it would be. He groaned as he shifted, crossing his legs as he threw them over the arm of the chair.

He covered his face with his hands. “It’s my own fault. I shouldn’t have pushed him.”

It’s been two weeks since Jordan had just done what Louis couldn’t do himself, and it’d been tense and heart wrenching and everything in between since then. The messages from the last couple of weeks seemed to run through his head in bits and pieces, like that first Friday night

8:57pm  
**I just thought I’d get to meet you this time, that’s all. All good, love x**

9:18pm  
_I want to see you. More than anything. I wish I could, but I have family commitments._

9:19pm  
**Then come. Come have dinner and drinks and dance with me and maybe kiss me a little.**

9:46pm  
_I can’t._

Or the emotional rollercoaster that’d been last Saturday when Louis had let his feelings get the best of him

2:23pm  
_That’s so unfair Louis! All this time I’ve been saying how sorry I am and how much it hurts that we can’t meet, and you throw it back in my face? When did I ever say that you weren’t enough? Where did that even come from?!_

2:26pm  
**Well sorry Haz, but it’s fucking hard to think you actually _do_ care about me like you say you do when you won’t even give it a _chance_. **

2:35pm  
_If you think that’s true, then you don’t know me at all._

9:27pm  
**I’m sorry. Genuinely this time. It’s just so frustrating knowing that we both want to meet and how we feel, but that we can’t, and you won’t even tell me why. It’s hard to just not think that you don’t trust me or something.**

10:18pm  
_Of course I trust you. I’m sorry I’m making this more difficult than it needs to be, but it’s not really my choice._

And then the icing on the cake that’d turned Louis into a ball today and prompted Liam to practically force his way into his flat

8:07am  
_Harry_

8:13am  
**Ron? I don’t know what we’re playing.**

8:15am  
_My name’s Harry._

_And I think you’re lovely and perfect and I wish things were different but they’re not and so all I can do is hope that something changes._

8:16am  
**Harry.**

**I really should’ve guessed that.**

**And I’m not perfect.**

8:17am  
_No, but you’re perfect for me._

Louis hadn’t written back, but he had sat for a while saying Harry’s name out loud in a way that seemed fitting for a high school rom com, not a 28-year-old who was supposed to have his life sorted out. Apparently.

He was slammed back into the present when Liam came and squashed himself onto Louis’ lap with a small _oof_ , throwing his arm around his shoulders. “At least you know his name now, I guess,” he ran his hand through Louis’ hair, “although you’re right, because you really should’ve guessed it.”

“Fuck off, Payno.”

There was a comfortable silence for a moment while Louis tried to collect his thoughts, tried to bundle them up in his head using the wires that kept him together, and then Liam spoke up and shattered it.

“Wanna get wasted tonight?”

Louis just grinned.

*****

Everything was warm, and Liam’s shoulder was soft, and somehow Niall had turned up at one point and all that Louis knew was that his own finger tasted like beer for some reason. He squinted at it in the light, but when all it did was glisten back at him, he gave up and rolled over onto his stomach.

Not his brightest idea.

Niall and Liam were chatting over his head, giggling about something that struck a chord in Louis’ brain; Zayn. Royal Variety. Royal family. Prince Harry. His Harry. He should call his Harry.

He, very carefully, thank you very much, sat up and grabbed his phone, grinning widely at Liam when he stopped talking.

“Imma call Harry!” Louis said happily as he stumbled to his feet, ignoring Liam and Niall as they lazily waved him out of the room.

He was certain that this was a bad idea for some reason, but he couldn’t find why, and before he had time to really stop and think about it, let alone the fact it was 2am, he’d called Harry’s number for the first time in his life. Louis sat patiently on the edge of his bed, swinging his feet for each dial tone, and when someone finally answered, it was obvious even as drunk as Louis was that he’d woken them up.

_“’lo?”_

The voice was wonderfully deep and slightly scratchy, and Louis giggled. “Hi! Who’s this?”

There was a slight pause. _“I – what? You called me, who’s this?”_

Louis frowned. “Louis. Who’s this?” There was soft swearing on the other end of the line, and then Louis was sure he heard a deep breath.

_“Lou. It’s – it’s Harry. You called me, love.”_

Oh. _Oh._ Oh God.

It was _Harry_ on the other end, and suddenly Louis remembered that he’d meant to call Harry, that this had been on _purpose._ Drunk Louis made good decisions. It seemed to hit Louis slowly that it was his Harry on the line, _his Harry_ with the deep voice that slid smoothly down his spine and made him shiver.

“Haz! ‘m sorry, didn’t mean to wake you,” Louis frowned, picking at his duvet as Niall roared with laughter in the other room for some reason. “How are you?”

Harry laughed softly, and it made Louis sigh. He sounded so _pretty_.

_“I’m good, love. Are you drunk?”_

Louis could hear something rustling in the background and realised that he’d called Harry when he was in _bed_ , and that was…well, that was something to think about.

He wriggled out of his jeans and shifted under the covers so he could be like Harry. Perfect Harry. “Maybe. Are you naked?” He yawned, covering up the amused snort that sounded down the line.

 _“Maybe. Are you tired? You sound like you’re in bed._ ”

Louis snuggled deeper into his duvet and let Harry’s voice wash over him, let it wrap around him safely and keep him warm where he hadn’t realised he’d started to freeze over without Harry properly in his life.

“I am in bed, because you are and now I can pretend we’re together,” he explained, yawning again as the sounds from his lounge room started to fade.

Harry’s voice was softer still when it came back through the phone. _“I’d like that. I’m -,”_ Harry hesitated, but Louis just pushed further into his pillow and waited, _“I’m glad you called. I’ve missed your voice.”_

“’ve missed you so much, Haz,” Louis shot back immediately, and he could feel his eyes starting to sting at the corners. He squeezed them tight and pushed on as the room spun. “So much, Harry. Want you so much. Want to see you next weekend, want to love you.” There was a shaky exhale, but Louis was too close to sleep now to realise. “Just want to love you, Haz, want you to be mine,” he mumbled into his pillow, and the last thing he remembered hearing before he succumbed was a steady whisper of _“Already yours”._

*****

A week. One whole week since he’d spoken to Harry on the phone, and Harry had been ignoring him ever since.

Every new day sent an extra blade through his heart.

The only thing that made it slightly manageable was the fact that right now, he was sat at Royal Variety, Niall on one side and Liam on the other, and Zayn was performing for the first time in months, and for a brief moment, everything seemed right in the world.

Louis let Zayn’s voice push out everything else and focused on the beat that travelled up from his toes, and on the way that it was easy to forget every problem he’d ever had when Zayn was singing. It was too soon that Zayn was finishing up with a shy grin, waving to the crowd as they screamed, and then he was gone from the stage, and Louis didn’t think his heart would recover.

While he’d been a fan of Zayn’s for years now, his love and respect for the man hadn’t diminished as he’d gotten older; it’d just matured with him, and while maybe 8 years ago Louis would’ve almost passed out at the thought of meeting him, now his ideal situation would just be the chance to sit and chat with him over a cigarette.

And speaking of a cigarette.

There was a small break now, the room slowly filling up with chatter, and Louis nudged Liam, nodding towards the exit as Niall rolled his eyes, but got up to follow them anyway.

“So,” Louis started as he weaved with Liam through the tables, “how are you feeling after seeing your husband?”

A hand came up to gently whack Louis on the back of the head, startling him.

“Pretty fucking great actually, thanks for asking,” Liam replied easily.

They’d all just gotten to the exit when they were stopped by a man who looked much too young to be a security guard. Louis raised an eyebrow at him.

The kid stood firm. “You can’t smoke out this way, but if you use that door here,” he gestured to a door _clearly_ marked ‘Staff Only’, “and turn left, you’ll find a courtyard out the back.”

Liam opened his mouth in an obvious attempt to argue, or at least confirm, but Louis was already grabbing him and Niall and pulling them towards the staff door.

“Great, thanks mate! Have a good night!”

They slipped through into an empty hallway, clearly into some kind of maintenance corridor, and Louis powered on through past a group of people wearing high vis vests with a brief nod. _Pretend you belong and no one will ever know._ They obviously weren’t supposed to be here; the kid had clearly got it wrong, but it was going to be much less crowded than the standard smoker’s area. He darted towards a door to the left, pushing it open and cheering when it led into a concrete courtyard with stools and small tables, and almost immediately lit his cigarette to take a drag.

He leant against one of the high tables as he heard the click of Liam’s lighter and Niall talking about the light production, looking around at the couple of other small groups out here, but it wasn’t until he _really_ looked that he realised how much they might’ve fucked up.

Because sitting at the corner table, surrounded only by three other people that Louis recognised as some of his family and smoking a cigarette with a wide grin was Zayn Malik.

Louis froze, and everything he’d ever told himself about this possible moment was thrown out the window.

There were no calm breaths or repeated thoughts of remembering that Zayn was just a _person_ like he was. There were no casual walks over with casual conversation and a casual smoke that ended with them being best friends. What there was instead was Liam following his line of sight, letting out a small scream and almost burning Niall with his cigarette as he flailed, and Louis choking on the smoke he’d just inhaled.

Smooth as silk.

The noise was deafening in the small, walled up courtyard, and all three of them stopped completely when Zayn’s eyes snapped to them. Louis might’ve still been fine if Zayn hadn’t taken Louis’ coughing as his cue to get up, come over, and pat him firmly on the back.

Fuck.

“Y’alright, mate?” Zayn’s voice was full of concern, and Louis had to take three deep, shuddering breaths until he could talk.

He thumped his chest with his fist. “Sorry, _sorry,_ I’m fine, it’s just,” Louis chanced a glance at an awed Niall and a lovesick Liam, “we weren’t expecting to see you out here. Huge fan, mate.” He stuck out his hand and ignored the fact that it was shaking slightly, hoping that Zayn would ignore it too.

Their hands clasped together with a shaky exhale from Louis, and a quirk of Zayn’s lips.

“Thanks man, nice to meet you.” Zayn sounded genuine, and he pulled out another cigarette from his jacket. “’m Zayn.”

_Obviously._

Louis grinned despite himself. “Louis. This is Niall, and Liam.”

He couldn’t have planned it better if he’d _tried._ While Zayn happily shook Niall’s hand, the expression that took over his face when he looked at Liam was almost the most obvious thing Louis had ever seen.

It was lucky for Zayn that the _most_ obvious was standing directly across from him in the form of Liam with his hand out.

“ _Hi_ ,” Zayn breathed out, and Louis couldn’t stop the tiny snort that escaped where his hand was clasped over his own mouth.

Niall kicked him in the ankle. Worth it, though.

Liam still seemed to be incapable of speech, but neither of them seemed to mind, staring at each other in a way that was starting to border on creepy. Louis let his gaze run around the courtyard again before he just figured _fuck it,_ and wandered over to talk to Zayn’s family. It was surprisingly easy after that, a fun and simple back and forth with everyone as they explained how they’d accidentally ended up there, chatting to Zayn about music and eyeing Liam suspiciously when Zayn pressed against his side, watching Niall outdrink all of Zayn’s team when they came out to join them later.

It seemed too surreal, sitting with his favourite artist and having a cigarette, because it _didn’t_ feel surreal. It felt normal, like Louis had just met a new mate at a pub who also loved music and football and talking shit. It didn’t even seem surreal when Liam grew enough confidence to throw his arm around Zayn’s shoulders while he chatted with Zayn’s cousin, pulling him into his side without even looking at him. The looks Zayn kept throwing at Liam didn’t even seem surreal, and neither did the fact that Niall was splayed across four men’s laps.

None of it felt like _too much_ until they went to leave the courtyard and could hear voices in the corridor.

Zayn stopped them with a simple hand before he entwined his fingers with Liam’s (Louis gracefully ignored the blush on Liam’s cheeks but filed it away for later).

“They use this corridor as like, a movement corridor because it’s quicker than going all the way ‘round,” he explained, but opened the door anyway.

What _none_ of them had been expecting was for the Royal Family to be fucking walking past.

None of them moved as the family walked by, Queen Anne walking in front with a quiet grace about her, Princess Gemma and Prince Harry following behind whispering to each other in a way that no one could overhear. Louis let his eyes travel slowly down Prince Harry as they got closer. He’d always been beautiful, curls and green eyes and dimples, but in recent years he’d completely changed up his fashion, adding colours and patterns and embroidery, jewellery and makeup, and Louis had fallen a little bit more in love with the mystery that was the Prince of England.

He rarely did appearances, preferring to keep away from the public eye as much as possible, and so it wasn’t very often that Louis got to see him. He could hear them a little bit better now, not what they were saying, just their voices, and something twitched inside Louis’ brain and made him flinch. He shook his head when Niall looked at him curiously, but there was still _something_ , something he couldn’t put his finger on, and it wasn’t until the family had walked past and he heard Prince Harry speak properly that it became obvious.

“ – and you called out to _me_ , love, and – ”

Recognition slammed into him so quickly that he couldn’t _breathe_.

_“Lou. It’s – it’s Harry. You called me, love.”_

Suddenly everything turned slightly blurry, and Louis had to reach out to grip Niall’s arm. Niall was there in a second, worry etched onto his face at the ferocity of Louis’ grip, and when Niall broke the silence in the hallway by asking what was wrong, it made the Royal Family stop and turn around.

Including Harry.

Louis was stepping forward and speaking before the shocked and confused look of recognition on his face mirrored itself on Harry.

“Haz,” he choked out, stopping himself before he got too close because he could _see_ a security guard moving in. “Oh my God, _Harry_.”

Harry seemed to be frozen, cheeks flushed and eyes wide and fucking _gorgeous._ “I – ,” he looked back at his mum and sister, but they seemed to just be watching quietly, a calm curiosity on their features. “Fuck, _Louis_.”

Louis didn’t have time to ponder what the shift in Queen Anne’s and Princess Gemma’s faces meant before Gemma was speaking.

“Oh! Ha, what are the chances?” she sounded amused, but Louis couldn’t tear his eyes away from Harry for even a second. “Bit like fate, Haz.”

Harry was _here_ , _his_ Harry, and even though almost all of his attention was focused directly on making sure he _never_ looked away from the man, he could feel the pieces slotting together in the back of his brain.

He took a careful step forward, incredibly grateful when he saw the small movement of Anne stopping their security from tackling him to the ground. Louis looked up at her, locked eyes, and took another few steps. The small smirk on her face gave him confidence.

“Haz, is this why you couldn’t meet me, and why you couldn’t send me selfies or talk to me on the phone?” Louis asked gently, even though his knees were weak and he was pretty sure he was sweating.

Harry was nodding before he even finished his sentence, curls flying wildly around his face to settle back to frame his perfect _everything_. Louis was in trouble. “ _Yes_ , I wanted to tell you so much but I couldn’t, obviously, and I’ve lied to you and the other boys for so long and I’m so _sorry.”_

Louis had already started walking forward though, mind made up, because the last thing he was doing now was letting Harry go. “There’s nothing to apologise for, darling. I think it’s a pretty solid excuse, don’t you?”

And he wasn’t lying. Even though his entire world should’ve shifted, he just felt…calm, like everything made sense now and he could finally just relax.

Harry nodded slowly, and it would’ve been impossible for Louis to ignore the wetness at the corners of Harry’s eyes, or the tremble in his fingers. They were toe to toe now, and up close he was even _more_ stunning, and combined with everything Louis already knew about the beautiful man in front of him, he was surprised he’d managed to hold out as long as he had.

“Haz,” Louis whispered, and even though he had a sudden flash that this was _Prince fucking Harry_ , the feeling that this was _his Harry_ was stronger. “Can we maybe go for a walk or something? Please.” Louis reached up to tuck a curl behind Harry’s ear, but he was too slow, because Harry had already reached up to cup his face, and pressed their lips together.

Harry’s lips were soft but firm, his hands cradling Louis’ face as he stepped closer, and suddenly Louis couldn’t get close _enough_. He tilted his head, caught Harry’s bottom lip between his as his fingers slid up to tangle in Harry’s curls, the other hand coming up to rest on his waist. He was trying to stay aware of the fact that the corridor was full of people, _Royalty_ and _Zayn Malik_ and fucking _Niall and Liam_ , but then Harry wrapped his arms around Louis and pulled him flush against his body, flicked his tongue against Louis’ lips, and Louis fell into it all with a soft noise.

It was a pointed cough from the Queen that pulled them apart, flushing but grinning, not moving any further than they had to. Louis let both of his hands stroke along Harry’s cheeks, wiping away the slight tears.

Harry nuzzled into the touch with a soft smile, eyes hooded but bright. “I wish there weren’t other people around for this, but I love you.” It was whispered, like it was a secret just for the two of them, but his voice was strong and sure, and Louis had no idea how this was his life.

Louis’ heart stuttered in his chest but he grinned, kissing the tip of Harry’s nose and laughing as he giggled. It wasn’t even a question.

“I love you, too.” He leant his forehead on Harry’s and closed his eyes. “And don’t worry, love. Your secret’s safe with me.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> Kudos and comments make me happy :)  
> Come say hi to me on Tumblr [here!](https://cameupshort.tumblr.com/)


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